External Repercussions
by CNJ
Summary: Picked up from the film Internal Affairs...Amy Wallace and Raymond Avila must deal with the inevitable repercussions of events shown in the film.
1. Default Chapter

Hii! This fic is taken from the film _Internal Affairs_ from 1990. I loved Amy Wallace and always wondered whatever happened to her after she was shot. I also wondered what happened to the other characters as well. Just an author's note saying that Amy Wallace, Kathleen and Raymond Avila and any other film characters recognized by those who've seen the film are not mine. Amy's mom and sisters, however, are mine. Sooo, here's my take… 

**External Repercussions**

_By_: CNJ

_PG-13  
_

**Kathleen:**

I don't know how long my husband Raymond and I sat on the bed, not saying anything after Ray killed Dennis Peck, his co-worker on the police force, but it could have been an hour or so.

"Ray, what are you going to tell them?" I whispered, my body still tingling from Dennis' touches. I looked back at Dennis' dead body. His blue-gray eyes stare back blankly, a look of death.

"Nothing…" Raymond stood up and with his shirttail, wiped off his gun and put it into his pocket. "The bastard got what he deserved."

"Raymond…" I gasped. "They'd catch up sooner or later once they see Dennis is shot…and what is this about Wallace…what happened between her and Peck?"

"Bastard shot her," Ray told me tersely as we headed downstairs.

"Oh…God!" I screamed. "Is she…?"

"She's not dead yet, but the doctors say she's lost a lot of blood."

"Poor thing…" I muttered. Amy Wallace is Raymond's partner. I met her about a week ago. Very polite, very sweet. She's small, has rather large brown eyes and shoulder-length dark hair. I admit I was a bit jealous at first and when my husband and Amy were working a lot of overtime investigating Dennis Peck, who was behind a killing spree of other cops, I'd fumed and Raymond and I had gotten into a huge fight. Amy had called then about some matter with the Peck case and I'm embarrassed to say that she heard everything.

But amazingly, when I met her, she acted as if nothing had happened and she hadn't heard a thing between Raymond and me and greeted me very graciously with a warm smile. I had nothing to be concerned about anyway, because Amy Wallace is gay and even if she weren't, I doubt she'd be the type of woman to carry on an affair with a married man. It shocked me that now she was hurt and in the hospital.

"So what are we going to tell the rest of the police when they find Peck's body here?" I asked Raymond.

"I'll think of something," Raymond said without expression as he poured himself a brandy. "With luck and your help, they won't have to find anything here."

"Surely, you're not going to hide his body in a closet, mop up all that blood, then later throw the body into the ocean or something!" I exclaimed. "I certainly will not help you do any of that!"

"Great, then you'd rather see my ass in jail!" Raymond sniped back, his green eyes flaring.

"No…but I bet if we get a good lawyer, the lawyer could build a case for your defense…"

"Juuust great, just great," Raymond slammed the empty glass down and cracked it. "Me turn myself in, then hope to God that the jury sees it as self-defense and lets me off…even if I'm acquitted, this could put a black mark on my record, possibly fuck up my career and get me in the shithouse with Grieb!"

"My God, then you're sinking to Peck's level if you're just thinking about how you can just get away with killing another person," I said flatly. "Just what will Wallace think when she comes around, uhhh? Not to mention Grieb, Penny Stretch, and all the other families of the officers Peck murdered?"

"I've heard enough of your defending that scum lover of yours!" Raymond bellowed, throwing the glass across the room, where it bounced off a picture, cracking the frame, then shattered when it fell to the floor.

"I'm out of here…" I muttered, racing out the door, leaving Raymond to continue his drama alone.

**Raymond:**

I did get around to calling the rest of the police and told them that I'd heard a fight upstairs and that I'd come in to find Peck dead.

"But apparently whoever did this escaped," I told Chief Healy. I was just not about to turn myself in. It would just undo everything I had done to expose the corruption in the LA Internal Affairs division. I just hoped Kathleen would have the sense not to openly contradict my story.

I headed back upstairs to the bedroom, stepped over the scum of Dennis Peck's body, and using gloves, pushed open the window that led out to the balcony. Fortunately, the second floor of this house is low enough for somebody to drop down to the ground, so no one would question my story that the "person" escaped uninjured by jumping down from this balcony.

On a quick inspiration, I kicked a potted plant over to give the appearance of a hasty departure and watched absently as the dirt spilled out over the concrete, then pushed over a wicker chair to give the appearance of someone who bumped into the furniture as he made his hasty getaway. That done, I went inside, leaving the window ajar, stepped over the Peck slime's body once more, then headed downstairs to wait.

They came twenty minutes later and asked the standard questions and looked around. The coroner came and took Peck's body away. I let out my breath in relief when they didn't seem to suspect anything of me, especially when I led them upstairs and they saw the fixed balcony with the overturned plant and askew chair.

It was almost noon, so I decided to call the hospital to see if Amy had pulled through. The receptionist told me that her condition had stabilized, but was still serious and she was still unconscious. She also told me that her family had arrived.

"Her family…?" I gasped. I never really thought about what family she might have; I'd just known her for a few weeks.

"Her mother and sisters are here and are with her now," the receptionist informed me. "Is there any message you'd like to pass on to them?"

"Tell them…I hope Amy pulls through…" I told her. "I'm her partner on the police force. When can I visit?"

"I'm sorry, but for now, it's restricted to family and listed friends only," the receptionist told me.

"Shhhit…" I muttered. I paused a minute and the receptionist asked if there was anything else she could help with. "No…thanks anyway."

"You're welcome…" the receptionist stated and we hung up. I let out my breath in relief that Amy was still alive. But she was still not out of the woods yet. Amy…Amy Wallace…funny, sharp, petite, a lesbian. She'd been so, so alive until yesterday as my partner.

We'd both known Dennis Peck was involved in real estate corruption and killing of fellow officers, but had to come up with proof. Dennis also fooled around with an assortment of women, including _MY_ wife.

I closed my eyes briefly as I recalled yesterday. Amy and I questioning Dennis' wife and her not knowing much of anything…investigating the beach house, then the gunshot and finding Amy crumpled on the ground, her sunglasses scattered in a heap beside her, her normally olive face contorted and white with pain, blood seeping out of her torso.

The ambulance ride to the hospital with her struggling to hang on and her asked me to hold her hand. The rush into the hospital and the doctors rushing her into intensive care. My rage building up and me rushing home to find my wife in bed with that bastard Peck. Peck's arrogant grin and snide remarks about his victims. His taunting me and calling me a selfish yuppie of all things.

The IA department had been taking its dear time about investigating Peck, so I guess seeing him in bed with my wife…I just had to take matters into my own hands this time. Some might say I shouldn't have killed Peck, but I did what I had to do.

**Enid Wallace:**

It was so unbelievable that my lovely, wonderful daughter lay in the hospital so seriously wounded. I'd toyed with the idea of calling a rabbi here just in case, but the idea was just too frightening, so I put it off. I just gazed down at her in disbelief as Dr. Miner described Amy's condition.

"…We've been able to remove the bullet from her torso, but there is considerable damage there. In addition, since she's lost a lot of blood in her lower body, the nerves there are most likely severely damaged, which could lead to motion impairment."

"Paralysis…" I whispered.

"I'm afraid so…" Dr. Miner told me and peered sympathetically at me and my other three daughters, Jade, Nora, and Marcie. Marcie was wiping tears from her eyes and she gazed at her sister.

Amy lay inert with three wires coming out of her arm, a bulky area under the blanket on her torso area and another wire coming out of her middle. A heart monitor attached to her chest measured her heartbeat, which came steadily, but very slowly…too slowly for my comfort. It was so heartbreaking seeing my normally energetic third daughter lying there pale and still.

"Oh, Mom, if she c-can't walk…" Marcie leaned on me and really began to weep. I stroked her dark curly hair as I listened to Dr. Miner tell us that there was a chance that the paralysis might not be permanent, but that Amy would need extensive therapy to regain her mobility.

"We can hope she can regain about sixty to seventy percent of her mobility back," Dr. Miner told us. "Would you like me to contact her regular physician, so she can have a look at Amy and recommend a therapist and neurologist who can best help?"

"Yes…" I nodded. "Thank you." Dr. Miner briefly touched my hand, then left.

"Mom…what on earth is she going to do if she's crippled?" Nora whispered. "What's going to happen to her career?"

"They have desk jobs if it's a permanent injury," Jade put in. She's the oldest of the girls. Nora is next, Amy is third and Marcie's my youngest.

Marcie wiped her eyes and went over to Amy's bed and took hold of her hand. "Oh, Amy, please, please, come back…"she whimpered, fresh tears spilling down her face. Nora sniffed and stroked Amy's straight dark hair.

"Please pull through," Nora added. "My husband and all three kids are rooting for you…I wish we all could have flown from Nebraska…"

"You can do it, sis…" Jade added, stroking Amy's arm even over the tubes. "You're a fighter." She leaned over, gently pushed Amy's bangs up and kissed her forehead. I also leaned down and kissed my daughter, then we went to get something to eat.

It was hard because none of us were hungry. We wound up bringing tea and coffee back to the room. We sat until the early evening. It was Marcie who first noticed the faint quiver of Amy's eyelids moving.

"Mom…" she told me and pointed. We watched. "I think she's coming around…" The heartbeat monitor picked up pace some…still slow, but it sounded a bit better. We watched for what seemed like a century. Amy's head then turned and her lips moved softly as if she were trying to speak.

"Amy…darling, wake up, honey…" I reached out and held her hand. Amy moved her head again and frowned a little as if she were concentrating hard on some task. "That's right, dear, concentrate…come back…you have people here who want you back…darling, keep coming…wake up…come back…"

My daughters joined in and we softly begged for Amy's return to this life. _Nooon w'rry, M', I'll ssee youuu_…it sounded like she was trying to say. Her lips moved again, trying to speak. _Y'll cammme_…she mimed.

"Yes, we're here," Jade told her. Amy twitched all over and struggled to speak again. _Yyyy_…_I_…"…eeeeere…youuu…" Amy's voice finally broke though and she squirmed again. "I c'n heeear youuu…"

"YESSSS!" All four of us whooped. "You can hear us!"

"Because we're all here," Nora put in. She held Amy's hand. "And you're here also…time to wake up, dear." Sure enough, Amy's brown eyes groggily opened and she gazed at us intently. She'd come back and I knew that she was going to pull through.

**Amy:**

Everything was a dreamy blur. I gazed up at my three sisters and mom, not quite understanding where I was or what had happened. A gray-haired guy was leaning over me and it took me a minute to realized that he was a doctor and he was checking things like my blood pressure and heartbeat.

"You're in the hospital, sweetheart," Mom whispered.

"Wh-what…" I had to struggle to find words, my mind was so soupy and my tongue felt thick. "…appened t' me…"

"You were shot on duty yesterday afternoon," Marcie told me, holding my hand as the doctor smiled at me, finished his checking and retreated into the blur. "Do you remember what happened?"

I tried to remember but couldn't. The only thing I could think of was my partner and I looking over a large beach house…but that's all I could remember. I don't remember being shot or who did it or what.

Raymond, my partner…oh, dear…was he all right? I tried to remember where he'd been or whether I'd seen him or anything happen to him, but my mind was foggy and whatever memories I had of the beach house and of yesterday at all faded in and out and melded together like caramel over a hot stove.

"Go ahead and rest now, darling," Mom whispered. I felt something removed from my chest and vaguely wondered what it was. It felt good feeling Mom's warm hand holding mine. I couldn't feel my lower body, however. I pondered that for a while as my sisters talked to me, then let it slip my mind. Later, I'd regain the feeling in the rest of my body as I became less groggy. I'd also find out if Raymond and the others in the LAPD were all right.

More later!


	2. 2

**External Repercussions**

_By_: CNJ

_PG-13_

**2**

**Kathleen:**

I spent most of the day driving around, wondering just what my husband was going to do next to cover his ass. I never knew he'd go so far. Late in the day, I decided to call the hospital to see if Amy had pulled through.

I had to call several before I found which one she was in and even then, they gave scant information. However, I was relieved to learn that she'd regained consciousness. Her mom and three sisters had arrived and were staying with her.

"Send her my get-well wishes, will you," I told the receptionist on duty. "…from Kathleen Avila."

"I will…" We hung up and I walked back to my car. So much crap in just a few weeks.

* * *

**Raymond:**

I went into work where Grieb greeted me.

"I understand that Peck was killed," Grieb told me.

"Yeah…somebody else shot Peck and got away before Kathy or I could catch him," I started to sit at my desk, then remembered that my chair was broken. I tried to forget that I'd smashed that chair in a fit of anger the other day when I'd found out that Peck was fooling around with my wife.

"Sergeant Wallace…oh, how bad…" Grieb shook his head sadly as he stared at her empty desk. "Have you heard any word on her condition?"

"Just that she was still unconscious as of noon today," I stated also gazing at her empty desk. Would she ever be back here again, I wondered.

"She sure kept you bouncing, didn't she?" Grieb continued. "Sharp as a tack. I do hope she pulls through. Maybe I should call the hospital to check on her condition since it's now afternoon and her condition could have changed."

"Yeah…do that…" I muttered, wanting to just get him away and get some time to think about what I'd do next. I sat for a long time until Grieb came back to tell me that Amy had regained consciousness. Her condition was still very serious, but she had improved a bit.

I decided to see if I could visit her…verify that she's still alive. So I bid Grieb good-bye and headed to the hospital.

* * *

Amy was on the third floor. The receptionist that the desk had to get my name and ask who I was, then after calling the room, finally let me go in.

Sure enough, three woman close to Amy's age and one older woman were perched by the bed. Amy herself lay in bed with what seemed to be a dozen wires coming out of her.

"Hello…" the older woman approached me, smiling and held out her hand. "I'm Enid Wallace…you must be Raymond Avila." She had salt and pepper short hair and large hazel eyes. "Amy can have visitors for a few minutes at a time."

"Nice meeting you," I smiled back and shook her hand.

"My name is Maaarcie," the woman with dark curly hair greeted. Her eyes looked a lot like Amy's…large and very brown. The other two women introduced themselves as Nora and Jade.

"H'llo, Ra'munnn…" Amy whispered, her own brown eyes heavy-lidded.

"Hi, Amy…" I came close and touched her hand, which had three tubes coming out of it. "How're you doin'…"

"Ohhh, Ray…" Amy tried to smile, but couldn't seem to. "I'm…I'm glaaad you're not…" she seemed to be struggling to find the right word.

"Hurt?" I finished for her. She nodded and closed her eyes as if just talking exhausted her. I also noticed that her lower body seemed unnaturally limp.

"Is anyone else…'uuurt?" Amy rasped, her lips seeming to move with great effort.

"No…" I shook my head. Amy nodded weakly, then her hand went limp and fell to her side, dangling over the edge of the bed.

"I think she's drifting off…" Nora whispered. "So, I think time's up…" She peered over at me and I got the message and bid them goodbye and left. "Hang in there, Amy…" I told Amy as I left.

* * *

I got home to find several cops waiting in the living room. "What's…?" I muttered, looking around.

"Detective Avila?" One of them asked, stepping forward.

"That's me…" I responded, getting a bad smell from this.

"We still have several questions surrounding Dennis Peck's death that we'd like you to answer."

Okay, play it cool, Avila, I reminded myself, coaching my palms not to get sweaty, for my breathing not to speed up. "Sure." I sat down, putting on my casual pose. They asked many of the same mundane questions typical of blue shirted pig cops, but one comment totally discombobulated me.

"…wicker chair upstairs did not have any clothing threads or lint on it," one of them was saying. "If someone had bumped into the chair, a small lint would have been left on the chair….but we found none."

"In addition, we found no clothing lint or intent over the railing," the other cop added. "If someone had leaped over the railing, there would be material residue over the railing."

"Hey, they made a fast getaway," I didn't like where this was leading. Had Kathleen said anything? "A slick killer can make a hasty getaway without leaving their ass lint around…especially if they avoided the squeaky part of the railing…" They peered at me for the longest time, then one of them made a note in his notebook.

I then felt like cutting out my tongue when I realized my error and fought the urge to smack my head. Of course, an intruder wouldn't be as familiar with which railings squeaked and which didn't…

"Mr. Avila, we're afraid you'll have to come down to the station with us," one of them intoned. He stood up and flashed his badge and I fought the urge to knock it out of his hand.

Like some criminal, they read me my rights and handcuffed me, adding that the gun I'd used, which had originally been Peck's,had also been found. I'd wiped off my fingerprints, but they'd figured out that an intruder wouldn't know how to level Peck's gun to shoot it.

* * *

**Amy:**

I was relieved that Raymond and the others seemed all right…then I remembered it was Dennis Peck that had been on the killing spree. What had happened with him? Had he escaped?

Mom reached out and took my hand. Nora, Marcie, and Jade had gone to get something for us for dinner. "Anything to beat this hospital food," Jade joked.

"You look worried," Mom told me. I nodded and told her some of what had been going on…what I could remember from the past few days. But I still had no memory of being shot. I was less groggy than before and my thoughts were now more coherent.

"I…can't feel my lower body," I added in with my other worries. As if to answer my question about my body, Dr. Levin came in. She smiled at me, telling me how glad she was that I'd regained consciousness.

I nodded, then let her examine me. The scary thing was, I could tell she was examining my legs, hips, or feet at all. "Can you feel this?" I looked down to see her with my left leg in a grasp. I shook my head, feeling cold fear seep through me. "This…?" She touched my hip, pressing. Nothing. I could just feel down to my lower waist, right around where the bullet wound was.

Finally, Dr. Levin sat up, her face grave. "Well, Amy…I'm sorry to say that your lower body from your lower waist down is paralyzed…the blood you lost from the gunshot wound was mostly lost from your lower extremities, which badly damaged thousands of nerve endings in your lower body."

"Oh…God!" Mom gasped. My sisters came quietly back in as Mom and I were digesting this news. Numb shock overtook me. Marcie came over and put her arm around me.

"So, she c-can't walk?" Marcie quivered.

"I'm afraid not…" Dr. Levin said softly. "I'm so sorry, Amy. But there is a possibility of regaining mobility through physical therapy. "I am so sorry about this…" Dr. Levin looked at all of us sadly for a long minute.

I'm crippled, I realized in horror. I tried to sit up, but just couldn't. I felt so vulnerable, so helpless. We sat for a long time, letting the news digest.

We ate, but none of us were hungry. I couldn't taste the food, even though it was Chinese, which I usually love. I fell asleep early that night and slept so deeply I didn't hear the morning nurses come in.

* * *

**Kathleen:**

Of all stupid things! Raymond of course gave himself away and was just arrested. That I found out when I got back home. Two officers were still there and told me that Ray would need a thousand dollar bail to get out again. I didn't have that kind of money up front and neither did Raymond, my idiot of a husband. I decided to let him stew for the night in the can.

Having had enough of his stupidity, I packed some bags and left that night to head to my parents, who live in a nearby suburb. They let me in for the night, but asked a million questions.

"Don't you think you should let Ray's parents know what's going on?" Mom asked me.

"I guess…" I guess his folks should know about their son's stupidity lately. So I called them and told them about Raymond being arrested.

"Wheeeyyy, hold on…" his dad, Juan demanded. Juan Avila is a lawyer. Maybe he can bail Raymond out of this mess because I certainly don't intend to. "Arrested…for what!"

I explained about the killing spree that Dennis Peck was on, leaving out the part of my sleeping with him. "…so after Peck shot Raymond's partner and left her almost dead, Raymond went postal and shot Peck to death….so he needs you to bail him out."

"How much?" Juan asked.

"A thousand."

"I take it you don't have the money."

"No…otherwise, I wouldn't be calling you."

"So, no, you'd leave Consuelo and me in the dark about my son's foolishness…"

"No, not that…it's just…just come up with the bail…" I stated and hung up. Sometimes Raymond's parents are even denser than their son. They live in Texas, so it would take at least a day for them to come on over with the bail.

* * *

**Amy:**

The next day was…long and very tiring. The nurses had to lift me on the next gurney, sponge bathe me, which was very embarrassing, then lift the parts of my body that were damaged. I looked away as they changed my bandages.

I also worried about what was going on at the LAPD. I was glad Raymond was unharmed, but was Peck still loose? Who would he kill next?

I felt a rush of anxiety as I struggled to balance on my elbows lying face forward on the table as Dr. Levin examined me further. She tried to calm me, but my upper body just shook uncontrollably and I fell forward, feeling weak and frightened. She stroked my back for a while before wheeling me back to my room.

"I think you need lots of rest for now, honey," Dr. Levin said softly as she lifted me onto my bed. Like a limp rag, my body just sank downward. Mom reached over and lowered the bed's upper half.

"Oh, sweetie, this must be so hard on you," Mom whispered. It sure was. I nodded, then the tears spurted into my eyes before I could stop them. Marcie came over with tissues. Seeing them made the crying begin for real and I leaned on Mom and just cried for the longest time, feeling the sobs rip to the surface and feeling high-pitched keens escape me. I couldn't stop crying for the longest time, even when the night orderly came in with the dinner tray.

I had a vague recollection of my sisters taking turns stroking my back and murmuring consolations. Mom held me until my tears slowed. I shakily fell back onto the bed, my upper body weak and almost as useless as my lower part.

The phone rang then and Nora grabbed it. "It's Chief Grieb…feel up to taking it?" she asked me softly. I nodded and reached out for the phone.

"Hello, Sergeant Wallace!" Grieb's booming voice filled the line. "Good to hear you're making a comeback!"

"Yeah…" I said softly. "I guess…I'm crippled, though, can you believe it. But let's not talk about me now…what's going on and is everyone all right…Peck…has he been apprehended?"

"Amy…" Grieb paused a minute and I got a bad feeling about that pause. "I wish I could tell you that everything's back to normal here, but it isn't…Peck is dead and Avila has been arrested."

"Oh…God!" I felt fresh tears fill my eyes. "Wh-what happened?"

"It appears that Avila shot Peck after seeing him with his wife…I am sorry to bring you this news…but as a colleague, I figured you have a right to know."

"Th-th-thanks for t-t-telling m-me…" I struggled to get out.

"I'm sorry this upsets you…hang in there and continue to get well." Grieb told me before we hung up. My mother and sisters peered at me with one somber, worried face.

"Oh, Mom…everyone…it's gotten worse…" I keened, a fresh spill of tears running down my face. "Ray's…arrested…P-Peck's…dead…" My voice just went then, clogged by sobs. Mom held me as I cried all over again. Was there just any way this nightmare was going to end? It felt like a bad dream that none of us could get out of.

Vaguely, I heard the night nurse come in and was glad to take a pill from her and just cry myself to sleep, away from this daytime nightmare we were all trapped in.

More later!


	3. 3

Finally! Got around to adding more on this story on Amy, Ray, and the others from the 1990 film _Internal Affairs_. I sure wish I had more time to write, but unfortunately my schedule is busy, so I don't like to make absolute promises. But I do hope that in the future, I'll have more time to add to my stories. Meanwhile, enjoy this chapter! 

**External Repercussions**

_By_: CNJ

_PG-13_

**3:**

**Raymond:**

I just could not believe I just spent the night sitting in a jail cell. I waited for Kathleen or Grieb to come with the bail, but so far as of eight this morning, neither one of them has shown. I blew out my breath in disgust and sit on the hard, narrow cot. A fat Asian guy turns and glares at me. I glare back. That guy's been seriously annoying me all night. First, he snored like a mack truck, keeping me awake all night, then when he woke up, he just sat and gave me dirty looks.

"No daddy to give you your bail, weasel?" The guy taunts in a gravelly. I don't dignify the fat jerk with an answer and just stare straight ahead. If only they had a TV in this stinking place, but of course they don't. I snort ironically at the situation I'm in...I made my career out of nailing criminals like that creep Peck and that stupid idiot Van Stretch and now because of the fricking, incompetent LAPD, I'm the one who got nailed and am now sitting in the can. Where the hell was Grieb? Or Kathleen? Oh, don't tell me they decided to leave me hanging here.

I got up and kicked the bench a few times. "If you're gonna throw a fucking tantrum, don't do it on this bench...take it elsewhere," the guy snarled. I fought back an urge to slug him and paced back and forth, slamming my fist into my hand and growing more and more frustrated. I can't believe my idiot of a wife refused to stand by my, so partly because of her, I'm in jail.

* * *

**Kathleen:**

"Mom...Dad...it looks like I'll have to stay here a while," I told them straight out the next morning as I sat down to breakfast with them.

"How long is a while?" Dad asked.

"Couple of weeks or so...maybe a month," I told them, running a hand through my curly brownish blond hair. As usual, this stupid hair's all over the place. "My husband's really been a jerk lately and I got word that he's in jail for killing that other cop and I'm thinking of leaving him."

"If you split from Ray, it looks like you may be here more than 'just a few weeks,'" Mom put in as she forked her bacon. "Are you going to afford your own place again after a month or two? And what about divorce court costs? How will you pay for them?"

"I don't know," I confessed. "But I'll think of something." I had a job at an art gallery as a tour guide, but it really didn't pay too much. It wasn't poverty wages, but it wasn't a high salary either; I wasn't sure if I'd be able to afford my own place any time soon.

The doorbells chimed then. Mom got up to get it. It was Ray's parents. "Hello, Kathleen...hello...," they greeted.

"I'm Mrs. Ellen Marks and this is my husband John Marks," my mother introduced herself. We're Kathleen's parents. Nice to meet you."

"We're Juan and Carlotta Avila and are Raymond's parents," Ray's mother told us. "We're here regarding our son, especially the unfortunate fix he seems to have gotten himself into."

We all got up and sat in the living room and I sighed and told them all about Raymond's stupidity and the embarrassing scene he made in the restaurant, but left out my sleeping with Dennis. I just put that Raymond thought I was flirting with Peck and that's what made him fly into a jealous snit and kill Peck and land himself in jail. I also told him about Amy's injury also.

"Poor souls..." Carlotta shook her head, over the cops that had been killed or injured. "And our son thought he'd fix things by adding more killing."

"I think he just wanted a quick ass-nailing," I snorted. They gave me a long look a minute. "Well, if you're still interested in bailing your son out..." I told them which jail his butt was in. I guess it satisfied them because they left, I guess to bail Raymond out.

* * *

**Raymond:**

"What I don't get is how could you sink so low to Peck's level!" My dad exclaimed over lunch. My parents had been the one to come and finally bail me out of that dump. But they'd taken me out to lunch to lecture me on how stupid I'd allegedly been.

"Easy..." I snapped back. "The slime was sleeping with my wife and loved getting me riled up! He threw her underwear in my face, for crying out loud, all right?" I figured I'd get a grilling from my staid folks, but I'd hoped they'd try to understand a little bit. "And that lousy excuse of an LAPD was dragging its feet. Was I supposed to just stand there and grin while that jerk Peck seduced my wife?"

"As an officer of the law, it's your obligation to comport yourself with a dignity ABOVE civilians," Mom told me quietly. Maybe so, but...

"I don't know how much we can help you with this trial," Dad put in. "I'll help you with your legal bills and refer you to a lawyer, but you need to help this lawyer put together a convincing case for your acquittal." I nod, sighing at the thought of a long trial ahead for me.

The rest of the day went from bad to downhill from there. Grieb finally called, but it was to tell me that I'd been suspended from the force pending the trial. "Thanks a heap," I bit back bitterly before I hung up. I finally got back home and called for Kathleen. One look in our closet told me that she'd packed and left. Her huge wardrobe of clothes were completely gone.

"Shiiiiiiit!" I screamed, slamming the closet door and kicking over some furniture. I stormed into the kitchen and fixed myself a tequila. But I put too much salt in it and it tasted like crap, so I hurled the glass into the wall and watched with dim pleasure at it shattered like the earlier glass. I was still fuming, so I grabbed a bunch of other glasses off the rack and hurled them into the wall and watched them explode into shards. Thanks to that bastard Peck, I'd lost nearly everything. I then remembered Amy. Maybe she could get some sense into my mess. Until now, I didn't really appreciate how intelligent she truly was and a good problem solver.

Heaving to calm down, I then dialed the hospital and was connected to her room. At first, her mom answered and was a bit slow about putting her on, but finally did.

"Oh, Raymond...why?" was the first thing she said. I heard the high whimper in her voice. She'd heard...what? And was she _crying_?

"What have you heard?" I demanded.

"Grieb...called and told me what you did with Peck...oh, I can't believe it..." God, she was actually crying! She really was in tears. I heard her sob several times over the line.

"Amy...are you actually _crying_?" I asked. There was a long pause and a sniffle. I then knew that Grieb had told her everything. But I couldn't believe she was actually bawling over this mess. _I_ was the one who'd spent the night in jail, not her!

"Of course I'm crying..." she said quietly, her voice a bit lower, but very shaky now and she sniffled again. "I really thought you were better than this, Ray...I'm so sorry...I thought..."

"You thought what?" I was totally flabbergasted at this. I'd maybe expected her to lecture me some, then start telling me about various legal routes I could take to better my chances of acquittal and maybe show some gratitude that I'd given that Peck bastard a taste of his own medicine. But I was not prepared for her to be all weepy and emotional over this and sobbing on and on about how I should have been "better" than Peck. God.

"I thought you'd...b-b-be above...P-P-Peck's...m-m-mentality..." Amy blubbered. I heaved a gusty sigh. "J-Jesus fucking...C-christ..." Amy carried on.

"Sheeeeeeshhhhhhhhh..." I muttered. Now she's going off on this psychology-mentality comparison nonsense. I actually wondered if maybe Peck's bullet had affected her brain after all. I heard her take a shaky breath as if she was trying to pull herself together. "Are you going to keep crying over this?" I said, attempting to make my voice patient and calm as to avoid making her even more upset than she is.

"I'm trying to quit..." Amy sobbed again. "C-crying...it just breaks my heart...I'm sorry, Ray...s-sorry for flooding over this way, but it's just been an upsetting few days for us...all of us."

"Yeah, I can see...my parents are here and they're all upset too," I said. We made small talk for a while, unable to talk about anything else. I was still a bit uncomfortable because although she'd quit the waterworks for now, I could still hear tears in her voice.

"Ray...I'll see what I can say for your trial..." Amy told me. "B-but...I can't condone..." Oh, Christ, here come her tears again. "I c-can't cover for you again...I'm sorry...and I'm...I'm so sorry it's come to this..." her voice broke then and I knew her waterworks had started all over again.

"Sure, bye, Amy..." I said. "Hope you recover soon." I hung up. It sounded like she needed not only to physically recover, but get herself together emotionally also...because with all that I'm dealing with, I don't need Sergeant Amy Wallace weeping all over me on top of this.

More later!


End file.
